Scythia

The Scythians (pronounced ‘SIH-thee-uns’) were a group of ancient tribes of nomadic warriors who originally lived in what is now southern Siberia. Their culture flourished from around 900 BC to around 200 BC (Iron age). The Ancient Greeks whose lands bordered Scythia gave the name Scythia (or Great Scythia) to all the lands north-east of Europe and the northern coast of the Black Sea. In the seventh century BC, the Scythian's controlled large swaths of territory throughout Eurasia, from the Black Sea across Siberia to the borders of China. Its location and extent varied over time, but it usually extended farther to the west and significantly farther to the east than is indicated on the map. The Scythian's were energetic but peaceful people, they preferred a free-riding way of life. No writing system that dates to the period has ever been attested, so majority of written information available today about the region and its inhabitants at the time stems from proto-historical writings of ancient civilizations which had connections to the region, primarily those of Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome and Ancient Persia.  

  The most detailed western description is by the"Father of History”, Herodotus, who referred to the “Scythian's” as Sacae and said their own name for themselves was "Scoloti" they were nomads, wandering from place to place in search of the most convenient land for farming. They held horses with especially high esteem. They were most famous for galloping on a horse at full speed while shooting bows, a skill particularly useful in warfare. The Scythian warrior spirit led them to become an archetype for the Greek valiant half-man and half-horse centaur. Their invasions into distant nations resulted not only in spoils, but also in the accumulation of a wealth of knowledge regarding different cultures that they brought back with themselves.The Scythians were not only talented in warfare, especially cavalry, they were also developed an outstanding art called “beast (or animal) style”, which is characterized by the flowing movements of beasts of prey, some mythical like griffins, and herbivores like the horses they loved and the fierce struggle between them. Women were valued just as equally as men in Scythian society, and their civilization saw great women leaders in international affairs. For example, when the Persians invaded the territory of the Massagetae Scythian's in 530 BCE (now part of todays Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan) Tomyris, the Scythian queen leading her army defeated the Persians. In one of the most famous stories of antiquity, Tomyris ordered the head of the captured Cyrus the Great, the Persian King, to be cut off and placed into a wine skin filled with his blood in revenge for the death of her son in a prior battle.  

 The nearly continuous war between the Scythia's and the Persians eventually resulted in the partial alliance of two groups. In 518 BCE Persians set their troops against the Scythian's again, with Persian king Darius I leading his army. The Persian troops were intimidated by the valiant Scythian cavalry, which forced the panic-stricken Persians to flee. As a result of a prolonged battle with the Persians, a part of the Scythian's forces were defeated, and they were forced to provide cavalry for the Persian army. In the Battle of Marathon (490 BCE) the Scythian's fought on the side of the Persians, previously an enemy, now an ally, against the Greeks. The records of Herodotus survived to tell of the bravery of the Scythians and their alliance with the Persian King Xerxes I (the son of Darius I) against the Greeks in the Battle of Plataea (479 BCE). The land of the Scythian's also drew the attention of Alexander the Great. He led a war to crush the Scythian's in the Jaxartes River region, known today as Syr-Darya, in around 329 BCE. He founded his ninth city, Alexandria Eskhate (“Farthest Alexandria”), at the banks of the Syr-Darya River now in southern Kazakhstan.  

 Many of the customs, traditions, and language of the Karakalpaks are deeply rooted back to the Scythians.According to historical sources, Saka people lived in Karakalpakstan back in the Neolithic Age. The gravestones tombs of Darius I, dating back to the 5th century BC show that the territory around the Aral Sea and Syrdarya were was occupied by the “Saka tigraxauda” (Scythians with pointy hats"). From the 2nd century BCE to the 6th centuries ACE Turkic tribes migrated from the territory of the Altay and Siberia. An assimilation of the indigenous and nomadic Turkic Saka population resulted in a new ethnic group known as Pechenegs. These tribes formed the basis of the formation of ethnic Karakalpaks and Kazakh hordes. The very word 'karakalpak "means " black hats "and refers to the fact that Karakalpaks wore hats from the black sheep's wool.